Another joins the party
by SyaRaven
Summary: Someone new enters Kate Beckett's life, how will she and Castle deal with it?
1. Beginning

_A/N: First fanfic I've written. All mistakes are mine, I don't have a beta._

_**Disclaimer: Sadly, not mine...**  
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A young girl walked into the precinct, her hair pulled up into a tight ponytail, her face determined. Stepping out of the elevator, she approached a passing detective.

"Excuse me?" she asked politely.

"Yes?"

"Could you tell me where Katherine Beckett is, please?"

"That's her desk over there, if you wait she'll be back from interrogation soon." Detective Ryan said, gesturing at his boss's desk for the girl. As she sat down at the desk, Ryan took off, following a lead on the case.

A few hours later, Ryan returned and found the young brunette still sitting, patiently, at Beckett's desk. After asking her if Beckett had spoken with her, he went running off to the interrogation room.

Kate Beckett was leaving the mirrored room dejectedly, not having gotten any useful information out of the suspect when she saw Ryan heading towards her.

"You got anything?" She asked.

"No, but you got a visitor. She's been here for hours, when I sent her to your desk I didn't think perp'd take this long to crack."

"I got nothing from him. Why don't you meet up with Espo, maybe run the details by Castle again, see if he thinks of anything we might have missed. I'll go talk to this mystery guest." replied Beckett, passing by Ryan, knowing he'd listen to her orders. When she neared her desk and saw the woman, no girl, waiting for her, she paused. This girl, this young brunette, she looked so familiar, but Beckett couldn't place her.

"Hello, I'm Detective Beckett." She offered her hand to the girl, who had stood when she approached the desk.

"Hi, I'm Marissa."

"What brings you here, Marissa?" Beckett could tell the girl was nervous, she was practically shaking her seat. Feeling bad that she had left this potential witness sitting here, waiting, for hours, she tried to make the girl comfortable. "Would you like some coffee?"

"No, thank you. I- uh- I've been, uh, looking for you for a while.." The mystery girl bowed her head, not meeting Beckett's eyes.

"Why's that? Do you have some information for the case?" Prodded the ever-searching detective.

"No..." The younger girl's voiced trailed off. Normally, Beckett would be impatient with this kind of conversation, preferring people to speak to her, not mumble and stutter. But this girl, something was different about her.

"Take your time, sweetie, there's no rush." The girl took in a scraggly breath, trying to force herself to spit out the words.

"I didn't tell you the whole truth before..." She trailed off again, having lost the courage to continue.

"It's ok, why don't you tell me the whole truth now?" Beckett leaned forward as she talked, trying to find some way to comfort the scared girl sitting in front of her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Espo and Castle getting off the elevator and talking to Ryan.

"My name is Marissa... Marissa Beckett." At those words, Beckett startled, bringing her back to the situation at present, staring at Marissa dumbfound.

"Marissa...Beckett?"

"Yeah. I'm -uh- I'm your sister."

"That's... impossible." Beckett waved away the boys as she continued to stare at the girl in front of her, the girl claiming to be her sister. Standing up, she was about to send the girl away, when Marissa started crying.

"They told me my mother died, that she was killed. But they let it slip that I had a sister, they told me she was saving the world. I've spent months searching through every record and newspaper in New York, trying to find a firefighter, a paramedic, or a cop with the name Beckett. You're the only one." Marissa had finally found her voice, desperately trying to convince the woman standing before her, her only hope at a family.

"My mother died almost 14 years ago. I can't be the right Beckett, I'm sorry, Marissa." Beckett was still standing, staring open-mouthed at the girl beneath her. She didn't want to believe that it was even possible, but how many Beckett's in New York had mother's that were murdered?

"I'm 13 years old, it is possible."

"Who told you about me? Is it possible you misheard them?" She could see the boys out of the corner of her eye, standing in the break room, trying to figure out what was going on.

"My social worker told me. She told me she wasn't supposed to release any of my family's information to me yet, because I'm not 18, and because they hadn't come looking for me yet. But she told me about you, to make me feel better about not having a mother. She wasn't expecting me to search for you this hard." Marissa was beating Beckett, 50 words to 1.

"Your social worker?"

"Yes, my social worker. I've been in the system since I was a baby. My parents gave me up." The possibility that Marissa wasn't lying, that the social worker hadn't been lying, that this whole situation could be reality, it was too much for Beckett.

"I – I have to go make some phone calls. Will you wait here?"

"'Course." answered Marissa, letting her head fall down dejectedly.

Beckett wandered off, letting the boys leave the break room and test the waters near this girl who had upset their partner so much. Castle brought her cocoa, thinking about Alexis ever being in a situation like this, while Espo and Ryan tried to get clues about her conversation with Beckett from her. But Marissa didn't say a word beyond "thank you" to Castle.

Castle left the bull pen, heading in the general direction that he had seen Beckett go earlier. Upon finding her in the halls outside the morgue, he slowed his walk, giving her time to notice him.

"Dad, what are you telling me?" she asked quietly, as though she was afraid to hear the answer. She saw Castle, her forever shadow, standing at the end of the hall, far enough away to give her the privacy he knew she wanted, and yet close enough to show support. Hearing her dad's answer, she crumbled down the wall, letting tears cascade down her cheeks. She didn't care that Castle was present, he had seen her in moments of weakness before. She felt him slide down beside her, silently comforting her with his presence.

"How could you not tell me? How could you lie to me for so long..? How could you leave her there for all these years?" Her questions were coming out wracked with sobs. She was barely listening to the responses coming from her cell phone. She couldn't comprehend any of what her father was saying. Softly, she pressed the 'end' button on the phone, and let her head fall onto Castle's chest. He didn't move, letting her decide how much contact she wanted from him.

They sat together for what felt like hours, Castle moved his arm around Beckett, trying to comfort her more. Finally, Beckett raised her head, staring straight ahead at the wall in front of her, avoiding looking into Castle's eyes.

"He lied, Castle, for 13 years he lied to me." The tears started flowing again, this time with Castle brushing them away, feeling more bold this time around.

"What did he lie about, Beckett?"

"Everything. That girl upstairs, her name is Marissa. She's 13 years old, and she's my sister." Castle gasped, not expecting anything close to that to leave Beckett's mouth. "When she was born, my mother was scared, it was right before she was killed. They decided to put her into the foster system, intending to keep an innocent baby out of it all, intending to get her back after wards. But she died, Dad couldn't bring himself to collect her. He left her there... for so long." The words tumbled out of Beckett's mouth, she needed to get them out from inside her before they exploded within her. Castle tightened the arm that he had around her, reminding her of his presence.

"It'll be okay, Kate."

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_So, what do you think? Should I continue?_


	2. Explanations

_A/N: You liked it, so I continued it! There were some questions about how it was possible Kate didn't know about the pregnancy, and I did my best to explain it here. There might need to be some suspension of disbelief with the timing of it all.. No beta, so all mistakes are mine _

_**Disclaimer: Still not mine..**_

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Castle kept his arm around Kate, comforting her for as long as she let him. Neither one of them said anything, Beckett was lost in her thoughts, and Castle was trying to figure out how he could help her. Lanie passed by them once, on her way into the morgue, but upon seeing the looks on both of their faces she thought it better to let them be, figuring that Kate would tell her all about it later.

"Cas- Rick.. She's right upstairs. What do I say to her? What do I do?" It wasn't often that Kate Beckett was at a loss for words, or even a loss of what to do. But this past hour, it had shaken her to her core, she didn't know what to think anymore.

"You try to get to know her, figure out what she's like. Kate, you have a chance at a family again, and that chance is sitting upstairs, fending off Ryan and Esposito, waiting for you." Castle took a deep breath, not sure if what he was saying was helping his partner, or confusing her more. He decided she needed another option, she needed to make this decision. "Or, you can explain to her that you need time. Maybe you aren't ready for this. Just because she is -"

"Marissa." Beckett cut him off, "her name is Marissa, Castle. Not 'she'. And how can you tell me to send her away? She was sent away by the two people who were supposed to love her no matter what, they left her there... I can't do that to her." She sighed, "I just don't know what to do."

"Well then, you should go upstairs and talk to her. Take her out of the precinct, to a cafe or something. Somewhere you will both be comfortable, and figure out together what to do. I think she's probably had enough of other people making decisions for her, without her opinion, in the past 13 years." Before the words were out of his mouth, Kate wiggling out of his embrace, getting to her feet.

"You're right, thank you, Castle." As she walked purposefully down the hall, heading towards the elevator, she heard Castle calling from behind her.

"Call me if you need anything."

"I will."

Marissa Beckett was sitting where her sister had left her, with Ryan and Espo sitting at the desk across from her, both failing at trying to subtly glance at the mystery girl. When Marissa saw her sister getting off the elevator, she raised her head, she had no idea what to expect from this woman. When she had been searching for the elusive "Beckett" in the newspapers, she'd spent every night fantasizing about their reunion. About how the elder Beckett would envelope her in a hug, promising that she'd never let her go. Instead, she got a stone cold face, telling her of the impossibility of their relation. Marissa had been hurt before, and what scared her most is that even though her sister is a cop, she couldn't be entirely sure that Kate Beckett wouldn't hurt her as well.

"Marissa, I'm sorry I ran off..." Kate could see the hurt in the younger girl's eyes, no, her younger sister's eyes. Knowing that she, on top of everyone else in Marissa's life, had put that hurt there, broke her inside a little. "I just – I needed to think. I lost my family a long time ago.. But I never dreamed that I'd lost a sister as well." She paused, looking down at the distraught face before her before continuing. "I call my father." At that Marissa looked up, her face showing how much she wanted information on her family, even if it was one that had abandoned her. "He confirmed everything.. He wants to meet you, if you're up to it."

There was silence as Marissa tried to figure out her thoughts, Ryan and Esposito were sitting stock still, listening to every word they could hear, but they still didn't understand anything. Kate was waiting patiently for her sister to make a decision.

"O – okay." She finally stuttered out. "When?"

"How about now? Unless you want to wait."

"Now's good. He – here?" Kate could hear the tremors and stutters in the other girl's voice, and she wanted to comfort her, but Kate Beckett is no good at comforting others, only pushing them away.

"Why don't we go out to lunch, there's a cafe nearby." Now that a plan was being formed, Detective Beckett was coming out in Kate's voice.

"Okay." With that the two sisters left the precinct, standing closer than strangers would, but not as close as either of them wanted. They were unaware of how pissed Epso and Ryan were at being left without an explanation.

Half an hour later, the three remaining Becketts were sitting down for lunch at a cafe near the precinct, giving Kate and Marissa an easy escape if needed. Marissa was still shaking slightly, these people that she had just met had given her up 13 years ago, she didn't know if they would want her now. Kate was fuming that her father had let all this lie for 13 years, not mentioning a single word, or getting Marissa out of the system.

"You have some explaining to do." The harsh words tumbled out of Kate's mouth, sounding like a parent chastising their child.

"I know, but first, I want to know a little more about you Marissa, I haven't seen you since you were a baby." Kate stared at her father with an expression of astonishment on her face. This man, her father, who had given up his child at birth thought that he deserved to hear about her before he explained everything to her?

"I don't have much to say." mumbled the young girl. "I bounce around from house to house. I go to school. That's about it." She was tugging on her sleeve as she spoke, Kate thought she saw a bruise on her arm, but couldn't be certain as her sister pulled the sleeve down.

"Just, explain, Dad." Burst out Kate, showing her impatient side once more. As Jim Beckett began his story, his eldest daughter sat stoically, listening to the words, while the younger one fiddled with her silverware, not able to sit as still as her sister.

"Your mother and I, we had a few pregnancies in between both of you. We had three miscarriages before we conceived you, Marissa." Both girls were shocked to hear the beginning of the story, but neither said anything, so he continued. "By the time we knew she was pregnant with you, we had decided that we weren't going to tell anyone until the pregnancy was past the point of miscarriage. That's why you didn't know in the beginning, Katie." Kate shot a glare at him for using her childhood nickname. "When you left for college your mother was around 5 months pregnant, and we didn't know how to tell you. You were so excited to leave, and we both knew that if we told you about the pregnancy, you'd transfer to a college near us. We didn't want that, you wouldn't have been as happy as you were. We wanted you to have a future that you wanted, to figure yourself out, without pressure from a new sibling. You didn't have the money to come back and visit during the first semester, and your mother didn't really start showing until after you left. Marissa, you were born in mid-December, and by the time Kate had enough money to visit for a few days for Christmas, you were already in the system." Jim ended his monologue with a sigh, he never thought that he'd have to relive these moments of his life, after he'd tried so hard to bury them.

"That explains why I never knew about her, but why did you give her up?" Kate was still fuming, thinking about her parents hiding a sister from her, and worse, putting her in the foster system as an infant.

"You know that your mother liked to help people who weren't being heard. She started working on a case late into the pregnancy, some guy who'd been put away for murder, and was saying he didn't do it. The difficult piece was, he was connected to the mafia. When she was getting close to the end of the pregnancy, she was also getting deeper into the case. I didn't know how scared she was until she approached me, saying we needed to talk about the baby. She told me about some of her digging, and about how she was worried about going deeper into the mafia. People have a tendency to get hurt around them, so we decided that we would put the baby into the system until she'd finished the case. When everything was figured out, we were going to get you back, Marissa." The waiter had come by with their food, so they paused to eat a bit before continuing. Neither woman had said a word, they were just waiting for the rest of the story, lost in their thoughts.

"Why didn't you get me?" Again, Kate wanted to do something to comfort her sister as she heard the pain in the younger brunette's voice. This time, she decided to follow through on it, and placed her hand on her sister's thigh, squeezing it gently, trying to show her support.

Marissa jumped as she felt someone's hand on her leg, relaxing a little as she realized it was Kate's. Though she wasn't used to being touched, she understood that her sister was reaching out to her, and she tried to relax as Jim began to talk once more.

"When she was killed, I couldn't think. I shut down. Kate can tell you how much I drank. It was a few years of her care until I came out of the drunken stupor I'd gone into. In all that time, it was so painful to think about anything relating to her death, and that included you. I would have been a terrible father... I didn't want to take you out while I was drunk. I didn't know what to do, so I prayed that you were in a safe home, and I left you there." He choked on the last few words, stumbling over his admission of failure to his daughter.

Feeling bold, Marissa kept prodding him, "And after you were sober? Why didn't you get me then?"

Seeing his both his daughter's faces staring at him with determination, he faltered, "I – I don't know... I couldn't..." Hearing that, Kate pulled her sister up, and stormed out of the cafe, dragging Marissa behind her. Once they were outside, Kate leaned up against the wall, with Marissa following suit.

Suddenly, her face still red from anger, Kate jumped forward, turning to storm back into the cafe. "Stay here." she told her sister before shoving open the cafe doors.

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_Hope you liked it! Should I continue? _

_Please review!_


	3. Emotions

_A/N: Here's the next chapter! All mistakes are mine, I don't have a beta._

_**Disclaimer: Alas, I have no claim to Castle...**_

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"You stay away from her, you hear me?" Kate Beckett was staring down at her father, giving him her infamous glare.

"Kate, she's my daughter. I want to get to know her."

"No, see, that's where you're wrong. She stopped being your daughter when you gave her up. No, she stopped being your daughter when you left her there, she's not your daughter anymore. Stay away." Jim dropped his eyes, he knew that what Kate was saying was the truth, he had no right to his younger daughter anymore.

"Kate, I didn't know what to do. You know how bad I was back then... What was I supposed to do, get my baby back while I was drinking?"

"No, you were supposed to get her back after you were sober!" Before leaving, Kate had one more thing left to say to her father. "And stay away from me, too." Jim Beckett was left sitting alone in the cafe, daughterless.

Outside, Kate found her sister where she left her, leaning up against the wall with her eyes closed.

"Hey, Marissa, are you okay?" Again, Kate felt the urge to reach out to her sister, but she didn't know how.

"I don't know. I don't know what to think." Mimicking her sister's earlier actions, Marissa slid down the wall. Kate slid down next to her.

"I don't know what to think, either. I'm so sorry that this happened to you."

"It happened to you to, Kate." Marissa stared at her sister, wondering what the two of them were going to be. "I should head home." She said as she stood up.

"Will you come by tomorrow?" asked Kate, unsure of what she wanted to come of this new discovery.

"Do you want me to?" questioned nervous Marissa.

"Of course. I don't want to lose you again." Kate stood to face her sister, grabbing her hand as she spoke.

"I'll come by tomorrow then." responded Marissa, leaning forward to give her sister a quick hug before running off.

When Kate Beckett walked back into the precinct, she found Ryan, Esposito and Lanie huddled around one of the desks, deep in conversation. Castle was sitting in his usual seat next to her desk, away from the others. Smiling to herself at the antics of her friends, she made her way towards her desk, and Castle.

"How did everything go?" He asked her quietly, not wanting to let the others, who had by now noticed her arrival and halted their conversation, hear.

"I don't know, Castle. He explained everything, but there's no excuse for what he did. She just looked so broken listening to him." answered Kate, lowering her head into her hands. Castle waved their friends away, and dutifully they exited to the break room to give the two privacy.

"What happened? Who explained? Your father?" inquired Castle, scooting his chair a little closer to his partner.

"Yeah, I called him. We had lunch. He just left her there, Castle. He was a drunk after my mother died, but when he got better, he just left her there." Beckett's voice cracked as she spoke, showing Castle how hurt by this she was.

"What did she say?"

"Nothing, she was hurt, she was abandoned. After we left, I went back and I told him to stay away from her, and from me." She raised her head to look at Castle, seeking relief in his eyes.

"Where is she now?" he asked, taking her hand in his, and rubbing it lightly for comfort.

"She went home, but she promised she'd come by tomorrow. I don't know what will happen with us, I don't even know what I want to happen. How am I supposed to deal with this?" Kate had noticed him taking her hand, usually she would have pulled away awkwardly by now, but she felt so alone and she needed this contact between them.

"Where is home for her? Some foster family?" Castle had flashes of a different reality, of Alexis being put in the system, bouncing around from house to house. Imagining his little girl growing up without a solid family, and without anyone to talk to except a social worker, he felt a bout of sadness overcome him.

"I guess, I don't know. I'll ask her tomorrow. I don't like the idea of her living in the system, I've seen the kids that come out of there."

"You can't do anything about it, Beckett, her parents put her in the system, only they can take her out, and I don't think that she wants to go with your father right now. And you barely know her, I don't know if she'd trust you or him right now. You need to get to know each other more before anything about her situation can change. It will do no one any good to jump into things right now." Castle continued to rub her hand gently, surprised that she was letting him get away with it for this long.

"I could get her out, as her family I could appeal the decision to put her there, and I could get her into my custody. But, you're right, we don't know each other well enough, it might not end well. I just hate feeling like this." Beckett lowered her head once again, the weight of the situation falling on her.

"Beckett, you shouldn't be alone tonight. This is too much to deal with by yourself, come over to my place. I'll make dinner, Alexis and Martha will keep you company."

"Castle, I don't think that's a good idea. I think I'm just going to head home. I might do some research on this whole thing." Castle sighed, dropping her hand.

"That's exactly what I'm trying to avoid. Kate, if you go home you're just going to dwell on this, and you need to talk all of this over with Marissa."

"Fine, Castle, I'll have dinner at your place tonight. Now, can we focus on this case. What did you, Ryan and Esposito figure out? And, for god's sake, get them out of the break room, I feel like a monkey at a zoo." Detective Beckett was back, Kate had disappeared for the mean time. Following her instructions, Castle got the other detectives out of the break room and back in front of the murder board, shooing Lanie back down to the morgue.

The four of them worked together, like the team that they had been for the past four years. By the end of the day they had several solid leads that they were checking out for the next day. Beckett had been distracted for the rest of the afternoon, and the fact that Castle was distracted by Beckett being distracted was not lost on the boys, though they didn't say anything.

"C'mon, Beckett, it's time to be done for the night." Castle grabbed her coat for her, holding it out until he had her attention.

"Alright, Castle, let's go." They left together, once more leaving the boys staring at them, wondering what the hell was going on.

The night at Chez Castle transpired much as he had predicted it would: Beckett sat on the couch catching up with Alexis and Martha, though he noticed as he was cooking that she left out everything that had happened that day. During dinner they made jokes at his expense, having three women up against him was a little more than he was used to, but it was all in good fun.

Following dinner, he suggested a movie, anything really, to keep Beckett's mind off her new sister, and her father's betrayal. They popped in The Holiday, not by his suggestion, and by the end of the romantic comedy, all four were sleepy. Alexis and Martha headed off to bed, leaving Castle and Beckett on the couch.

"How are you?" He asked her gently, not wanting to break the peaceful mood.

"I don't know, everything is just so confusing. I still don't know what to think." she replied, shifting a little closer to him so that she could rest her head on his shoulder. He almost startled at the motion, but caught himself just in time. He never knew Beckett to be a touchy-feely person, but with everything that had transpired that day he knew that she needed some human contact. Contact with someone who didn't expect her to be a good sister, or a dutiful daughter, or a tough detective. She just needed to relax, and he let her. Within moments, Castle heard her breath evening out, and he knew she was falling asleep on him.

Ever the gentleman, he waited until she was fully asleep before picking her up bridal-style and carrying her up to the spare bedroom. After tucking her in, and laying out some of Alexis' sweat pants in case she got uncomfortable in her clothes during the night, he risked leaning over to place a gentle kiss on her forehead.

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_What do you think? Should she try to get custody of her sister? _

_I have lots of ideas for this. I have the next chapter already written, but I'm waiting to see if I should change anything before uploading it. Keep the reviews coming!_


	4. Getting Closer

_A/N: So, the last chapter hasn't gotten many hits. If you guys have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know!_

_Also, it's been suggested that I get a beta, so if anyone is interested please PM me._

**_Disclaimer: I don't own anything_**

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Kate Beckett woke up slowly, feeling the sunlight hitting her face, and the warm blankets surrounding her body. She sat up suddenly, realizing that the bed was different, looking around her she saw that they whole room was different. After a few moments of confusion, she remembered the previous night. Coming to the conclusion that Castle carried her to the guest room, she looked around to see if he thought to leave her any clothes. After changing into the sweats, she followed the smell of coffee and pancakes down to the kitchen, where Castle was cooking in a bathrobe. Alexis looked up from her breakfast, expecting to see her grandmother, and was greatly surprised to see Beckett instead.

"Kate? You spent the night?" asked the surprised teenager.

"Yeah, I fell asleep on the couch. But, I should head out, I need to get home and change before work." Having expected this, Castle handed her a Tupperware with her share of pancakes, and a travel mug of coffee to her before heading to the door and grabbing both of their coats. "Castle..."

"I made you breakfast. I'm coming with to your apartment to make sure you don't hole yourself up inside. Now, let's go or we'll be late for work."

Continuing their streak of leaving their friends and colleagues with questions on their lips, the two left before Alexis could ask what they were going on about.

The morning proceeded much as the previous evening had, with the boys wondering why Beckett and Castle were distracted while they worked the case. A lead finally panned out and they had the suspect in custody. Ryan and Esposito were taking point on the interrogation due to their partners being out of it. Just as they were about to get the perp to break, Beckett felt herself being pulled out of the observation room.

"Lanie! What are you doing? He's about to spill." she gasped out as she got over her surprise.

"Girl, I wanna know what's going on. The boys tell me there was some mystery girl here to see you yesterday. Then I saw what went down with you and Writer-Boy in the hall yesterday, you looked all shook up. Then, after you disappear for a few hours, you come back to have some long-ass talk with him, and you end up leaving together. Here you are today, walking in together, and both of you being too distracted to work. So it's your time to spill." Beckett rolled her eyes, she didn't know if she wanted to explain everything to Lanie, though she was her best friend it was all too confusing to try to explain without talking it over with Marissa.

"Look, Lanie, I'm on duty. Why don't we have a girl's night tomorrow, and I'll explain everything, I promise." Seeing the objection written all over her best friend's face, she continued. "But, right now I need to get back to work. Don't you have some bodies to examine, or something?" Lanie backed down, knowing she wouldn't get anything out of Beckett unless she was ready.

"Fine, but girl, our girl's night is tonight, not tomorrow. And you will be explaining everything." said Lanie as she let her friend go back into the observation room.

"What was that all about?" Asked Castle upon her return.

"She just wants to know what's up. What did he say?" asked Beckett in return, gesturing towards the man sitting across the table from two stern-looking detectives.

"Oh, nothing much. Just a full confession to the murder." At his partner's astonished face, Castle chuckled and gave her more details. "Apparently he found his wife cheating on him, and since he knew about her gang connections from her teen years, he staged the body after he killed her. Crime of passion, and he tried to cover his tracks."

"Great. Let's get started on the paperwork." Hearing Castle groan, it was Beckett's turn to laugh at him. But before they reached her desk, they were approached by Esposito.

"Hey guys, mystery girl is back." Sure enough, Marissa was coming out of the elevator, looking just as nervous as she had the day before. Waving Esposito and Castle away, knowing Espo would tag-team with Ryan to try to get information out of Castle, she headed towards her sister.

"Hey, Marissa." she said as she got closer to the young girl. It struck her how young and old she was at the same time. Marissa was wearing a long-sleeved blue shirt, and she was fiddling with the sleeves again as she stood in front of Kate.

"Hi, Kate. I came back." Seeing Kate smiling at her, Marissa gave her a small grin in return. It was the first time that Kate had seen her sister smile, and it made her realize that she wanted to see it more often.

"Do you want to head out? We can grab some lunch, at a different restaurant, if that's okay with you."

"Sure, where did you have in mind?" For the second time, the sisters left the precinct together, this time they stood closer than they had the day before.

"What was life like for you? With Mom and Dad?" asked Marissa as soon as the two had gotten a table at the restaurant.

"It was good growing up, they were great parents. We didn't have an overabundance of money, but we got along just fine. I had a wild child phase, but through it all I worked hard in school, and in my job. When Mom died... It was hard. I lost Dad too, for a while. Going through that pain, it's what made me decide to be a cop. I worked harder at becoming a homicide detective than I had ever worked in school, or any other job." Kate saw her sister's face harden when she began to talk about her mother's murder. Trying to relieve some of the pain there, she told her about catching their mother's killer. But it backfired when Marissa asked about the professional hit, and was told everything that had transpired since their mother's murder. After detailing the case to the best of her knowledge, Kate asked her sister about her childhood.

"Difficult, being bounced around so much. Since I was never put up for adoption, the nice houses couldn't keep me, and eventually, every place you stay goes away. Some of the houses have been bad, some okay, few great. But, you get used to it, if that's the way its always been. I work hard in school, I'm ahead by a bit. Most kids, they knew their parents at least a little, had some memories of them. I always wished that my parents would come pick me up them day, but I didn't have any memories of them to go along with that wish. I was really sad to hear that my mother had been killed." Kate listened to the story with growing sadness, more than anything she wanted to take her sister away from her life, and give her a new one.

They sat and talked for another hour, before Ryan called and told Kate that she was needed back at the office.

"Marissa, I have to get back to work. Do – do you want to come with?" asked Kate, suddenly shy.

"To meet them?"

"Yeah..."

"Kate, I don't think I'm ready for that... Maybe some other time?" The words came out of Marissa so quietly they were almost a whisper. She didn't want to disappoint her sister, but she couldn't handle meeting so many new people after the train wreck of a lunch with their father the day before. "I'd just like to get to know you a little better first, if that's okay."

"Sweetie, of course it's okay. I didn't mean to pressure you." Mentally kicking herself for pushing the girl too far, Kate floundered for something to say. "When do you want to get together next?"

"Is tomorrow okay? We can do lunch again..." Marissa let her voice trail off, not sure if she was pushing her sister into something she didn't want. It might be a bit much, to find out you have a sister you never knew about, and then have her want to have lunch with you every day.

"Sure thing. I'll see you then." This time it was Kate who leaned in to give her sister a hug before heading off.

The two Beckett girls walked in separate directions and had the same thought: _Maybe someday we'll become sisters._

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_Please review! They make me happy :]_

**Sya**_  
_


	5. Conflicts

_A/N: Thank you to everyone that's been reading and reviewing this story! I'm looking for a beta, so let me know if you're interested._

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Kate Beckett entered the morgue room later that night, looking for the medical examiner. Lanie had insisted that their girl's night be that night, leaving Kate with only a few hours to prepare her speech to her best friend explaining the presence of a long-lost sister.

"Lanie, you here?" she called out, hearing no response. Sighing, she took a seat on the lab table, losing her thoughts into those of the evening before her. Lanie had always been supportive of her, but this situation was so far beyond the ordinary that Kate wasn't sure how she was going to react. No one but Castle knew about the identity of the mysterious girl that the workplace was whispering about.

"Kate, I thought you said we were meeting at your place tonight." stated Lanie, walking into the room. Kate came out of her thoughts quickly, not wanting to show hesitation in front of her friend.

"I did, but I got off early, so I figured I'd come down and meet you here instead. We can go out to Remy's, if you'd like." she answered, hopping off the table.

"Girl, I don't care where we are so long as you explain all this to me." replied Lanie, stepping forward to gesture at Kate, and her somber expression. "You've been out of it for the past few days, and I want to know what's going on."

"Alright, Lanie, let's go. I'll tell you the whole story once we get there, okay?"

"Deal." The two left the morgue, heading to the nearby restaurant. Lanie was full of joy, she loved getting juicy gossip from her friend, and based on what Esposito and Ryan had observed going on between her friend and the Writer-Boy, this was bound to be some good gossip. Kate, on the other hand, was full of dread, she had no idea what was going to happen at this dinner, a feeling she was becoming rather accustomed to with her daily lunches with Marissa.

"Now spill." the order came from Lanie as soon as the two of them had picked out their booth and ordered their burgers.

"Lanie, promise me you'll listen before you speak, okay?" When she saw her friend nod her head, Kate began her story. "It's complicated, really complicated. But the basics of the story are that the mystery girl that you saw, she's my sister."

"Wha –" began Lanie, before seeing Kate's glare and swallowing the rest of her question.

"My mother had her right before she was killed, and because she was investigating a mafia family, she was worried about the possible repprocautions on a newborn, so they placed her in foster care.. Her name is Marissa Beckett. She's 13 years old now, and she was never claimed. My father couldn't bear to collect her, too many memories of my mother's death. She tracked me down the other day, the day that you saw Castle and I in the hall. I was distraught, I'd just gotten off the phone with my father, hearing him confirm her story, I couldn't deal with it. Castle was there for me." She finished quietly, staring down at the plate of food in front of her rather than her best friend sitting across from her.

"Kate, this is huge. Why didn't you tell me before? We've all been worried sick about you." The joy of the prospect of hearing juicy gossip was gone from the medical examiner's voice. It had been replaced with genuine worry for her friend.

"It was just to difficult. And Castle's been telling me that I need to talk things over with her, I can't make any life decisions without talking to her. I don't even know what I want to do.." Kate's voice trailed off once more, showing Lanie just how upset about these recent events she really was.

"What does your father have to say about all of this?" Prodded Lanie, gently.

"He's an ass, Lanie. We had lunch with him, the same day that Marissa found me. He couldn't even apologize to her, all he did was make excuses for himself, about why he didn't get her out of the system." Lanie laughed at the story.

"That must have pissed you off big time. You yell at him?"

"Yeah, I told him to stay away from both of us, that he wasn't our father anymore." Reliving the anger of earlier lunch, Kate found the confidence back in her voice for the first time in days.

"What did you do that for, Kate? You know that was too harsh. The guy was just as thrown as you were, I bet he wasn't ever thinking that his baby girl was going to show up in his life one day as a teenager." The detective stared at her friend in amazement, she couldn't believe that Lanie was defending the actions of her father.

"Lanie! He left her in the system, for 13 freakin' years! What am I supposed to do? What is she supposed to do? Hug him and tell him he did the right thing? He didn't, Lanie. He didn't even come close to doing the right thing." The words felt like acid in Kate's mouth, she found herself glaring at Lanie with a force that she would normally reserve for a murder suspect.

"Yeah, I know, sweetie. But one lunch can't show you how he's planning on fixing his mistakes, now is it? You gotta give him more time, maybe in a week or two set up another lunch. He ought to get to know his second daughter, don't you think?" When Kate didn't answer immediately, Lanie tried another tactic. "Marissa deserves to know her remaining family, doesn't she?"

"Lanie, I'm her family. Or, I can be." Kate took in a deep breath. "I will be, Lanie. She doesn't need him, he didn't want her. She'll always have me though."

"Look, hun, you don't want to listen to me, fine. But promise me one thing, you talk this over with Castle tonight." At Kate's surprised glance, Lanie laughed. "Yes, of course I knew you were planning on visiting him after our little dinner. Ask him what he thinks, without telling him what I told you, and if he says the same thing, then that's what you do, alright, girl?"

Reluctantly, Kate nodded in acquiescence, and Lanie relaxed into the back of the booth, taking a large, much-needed bite of her burger. The conversation changed, leading away from the difficult discussion of Marissa Beckett and on to topics that were easier to digest, such as murder.

Castle answered the knock at his door later that night without bothering to check who it was. Only one person would be showing up, unannounced, at this time of night: Beckett.

"Hello, Beckett." He greeted, throwing open the door.

"Hi, Castle. Sorry to just show up like this." replied the detective, stepping into the loft as Castle held the door for her.

"No problem, I figured you'd come over after your chat with Lanie." He guided her towards the couch, and Kate could see the two wine glasses already poured and waiting on the table. "How did it go, by the way?"

"It was... difficult." she answered, after searching for a word to describe the evening. "She was surprised, but I was expecting that. I just wasn't expecting..."

"Expecting what?" inquired Castle after waiting a few moments for her to complete her sentence.

"A defense." Kate sighed as she saw the confusion on her partner's face, plopping herself down on the couch and taking a large sip of wine from one of the glasses. "Nevermind, Castle."

Castle sat down next to her, not too close, but close enough. He waited patiently for her to sort out her thoughts, knowing that pushing her wouldn't get him very far.

"Did I do the wrong thing, Rick?" she asked finally, confusing him further.

"What do you mean?"

"By telling my father to stay away.. I mean, he is her father, and he might have made a mistake in the past, a hell of a mistake, but shouldn't he have an opportunity to get to know her?" Kate asked quietly, lowering her head, not looking Castle in the eye.

"What you should really ask is, shouldn't Marissa have the opportunity to get to know her father?" Kate finished the rest of her wine in one gulp, covering her face with her hands. She had known, from the moment that the words had come out of Lanie's mouth, that her friend was right. She had tried to deny it, but she had known exactly what Castle was going to say as well.

"Kate." said Castle, trying to get her to look at him. He couldn't bear the pain that he saw going through her. "Kate, look at me." Surprisingly, she responded, raising her head to gaze into his eyes, getting momentarily lost. She found her way again as he began to speak. "You didn't do the wrong thing, you both need space from him. Marissa needs to get to know her sister, and she can't do that properly if her father is hanging around begging for forgiveness, or even just trying to justify something he did 13 years ago. Yes, she should get to know him, but not yet. Not right now. Right now, the two of you need to focus on each other, and no one else."

Only one person in the world could have explained to her something so serious in such few words. Only he could make her feel better about her screwed up life in just a few seconds. Only he could restore her hope. And he did.

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_Please review! They make me write faster :]  
_

**Sya**


	6. Phone Call

_A/N: Thank you to everyone to has reviewed this or put it on alert, it makes me a very happy bunny!_

**Disclaimer: As much as I wish I was a billionaire so I could buy Castle, I'm not, so I don't own anything.**

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Once again, Kate Beckett found herself waking up in a foreign room, albeit a familiar one. There were two major differences between the last time she'd woken up like this, and the current moment. The first difference, last time she woke gradually, in a more peaceful manner than her current situation, with her phone ringing insistently in her pocket. The second difference was that while she was in Castle's loft, this time instead of being in his guest room, she found herself in his bedroom, in his bed.

"Beckett." she answered her phone firmly, not caring if she woke Castle. But feeling around her, it wasn't yet dawn and the room was shrouded in darkness, she felt that the bed was empty except for her. The voice on the other end of the phone surprised her more than the empty bed, or even the fact that she was in her partner's bedroom. It was Marissa on the other end of the 3am phone call, a very shaky Marissa, but her sister nonetheless.

"Kate? Kate, can you help me please?" she whispered, her voice cracking as she tried to force the words out.

"Sweetie, where are you?" Kate was sitting bolt upright in her bed, her sister's voice was shaking more than it had on the day that they met, this was not a good sign.

"Fifth Avenue & 34th Street." was all that Marissa was able to choke out before being reduced to sobs. "Please hurry."

"I'm on my way sweetie, stay there." For once in her life Kate was thankful that her job entailed being awoken early in the morning, because she was ready to go in under two minutes. It had been such a long time, however, that she'd needed to exit the house without waking anyone else up that she forgot to be quiet as she exited the loft.

"Kate? Where are you going?" asked a gruff voice, stopping her in her tracks. Realizing that it must have been her partner talking to her she relaxed, taking her hand off her gun.

"Marissa called, she needs me to go get her. She needs my help." She answered, trying to locate him in the dark.

"Alright, I'm coming with you."

"Castle, you don't have to, get some sleep." But her response was too late, he was already off the couch and heading towards her. Unfortunately, Castle was not as accustomed to walking around the house in the dark as she was, and he misjudged his movements, crashing into her. Kate managed to steady the two of them, before rotating Castle, and giving him a shove in the direction of the door as he huffed out a 'sorry'.

Having deemed it too difficult to catch a cab at that time of night, Castle led Beckett to the garage of his building, and got into his Ferrari. For once, Beckett didn't tell him that she was driving, and if the trip had taken place under different circumstances, he would have taken more pleasure in that fact. Instead, he drove silently to the address she'd told him.

When they got there they didn't see any sign of the young girl. Kate was out of the car before he had unbuckled his seat belt, peeking into all the dark corners, hurrying to find her sister. After searching for a few minutes, Kate gave up on trying to locate the girl quietly, and pulled out her phone to call her. The two heard the song 'We are family' burst out suddenly, and went running towards the source. Castle was the one who got there first, dropping to his knees when he located the teen in the mouth of an alley.

"Kate." The word fell out of his mouth as a plea, freezing her blood as she got closer to where he, and her sister, was. He swung out his arm to stop her, but she barged through it, nothing was going to keep her from her sister. The sight caused her legs to fail her, and she fell, using Castle to break her fall.

Marissa Beckett was laying unconscious in the mouth of the alley, her head propped up against the brick wall, her clothes shredded and a mess. There was blood all over, but not enough to have come from a serious injury. Kate could see some blood trickling from Marissa's head, probably from hitting it on the wall as she fell. There were other bruises blossoming, some on her legs, and her arms, and a few on her hands. Whatever had happened, she had fought back. Her cellphone, still blaring its ringtone, was clutched in her hand.

Kate was barely able to get words out of her mouth to call the ambulance, Castle ended up relinquishing her of her phone, and completing the call for her. They didn't say anything as they waited for the paramedics to arrive, Castle just held her hand as she sat beside her sister, stroking her blood-streaked hair.

The rest of the morning passed in a blur, the paramedics arrived, loading the young girl into the ambulance, and taking the Becketts to the hospital. Castle met them there, and took care of Kate while her sister was getting checked out by the doctor. They waited together in the uncomfortable chairs, Kate with her head resting on her partner's shoulder out of exhaustion until the doctor came to give them an update. Kate didn't hear a word he said beyond "she'll be okay.", thankfully, Castle was listening for her. She fell back into her seat, waiting for him to sit down next to her again.

An unknown amount of time passed while the two of them sat together, and the next thing that Kate remembered was standing up to greet Lanie who had come at Castle's request. As the only other person who knew who Marissa was, it had been the logical choice. The medical examiner rushed to hug her friend, holding her tightly and pestering her for any information on Marissa's condition.

"I don't know, Lanie. I don't know what happened. She called me around 3, and begged me to help her. When we got there, she was unconscious, and beaten. They told me she's going to be okay, but she's not awake yet." sighed the worn-out detective. The three stayed together for another hour, until the investigating officers arrived.

"We need to get statements from you, Detective Beckett, and you as well, Mr. Castle." they said, drawing the three visitors out of their reveries. Going over the details again was incredibly difficult for Kate, she broke down a few times crying, squeezing Castle's hand the whole time. By the end of their statements, Marissa was awake, and the officers went in to get her's, leaving Kate once again waiting outside her room.

Lanie made the call to the captain, explaining, vaguely, why her best detective and her partner weren't going to be at work that day, saving Kate from more explanations. Finally, after hours of waiting and worrying, Kate was allowed in to see her sister.

"Hey, sweetie." she said, trying to keep it together in front of her sister. Castle and Lanie were waiting outside, giving her some privacy with her sister.

"You came." The tone of surprise in her sister's voice nearly killed Kate.

"Of course I came. I got there as soon as I could, I've been waiting to see you." answered Kate tenderly, taking the seat next to the bed. She reached out to take Marissa's hand in hers, gently. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay." Marissa smiled lightly as Kate's obvious disbelief. "Really, I'm – I'm used to it."

"Used to being beat up?" teased Kate lightly, thinking Marissa was implying being used to a different kind of pain, a more emotional kind.

"Yeah.." sighed her sister, breaking Kate's heart even further as she understood the real implications of her sister's admission.

"Oh, Marissa, I'm so sorry..." Before she could continue, a doctor walked in, interrupting Kate.

"Ms. Beckett, I'd like to talk to you in private if I may." He said, gesturing to the hall. Kate got up to speak with him.

"Of course, doctor." As they stepped outside, Castle got up to stand next to Kate, the doctor was about to send him away when he saw Kate reach for his hand.

"It's about your sister" Kate held back an eye roll, letting the doctor explain the obvious to her. "We found a lot of bruising, and a few cuts. They were all minor, only a few needed stitches. She does have a concussion, but nothing to serious except her wrist, which is fractured." Kate, who had been standing very rigidly listening to the doctor, took in a deep breath of relief. She felt Castle do the opposite behind her, he let out a sigh of relief.

"What worries us, Ms. Beckett, is that not all of the bruises are from tonight's attack. She has a number of bruises on her arms and torso that are rather recent, but not as recent as tonight. And I'd also like you to know that we're running a rape kit on your sister, she couldn't give exact details on her attack tonight, and I thought it'd be best to be sure." The doctor finished, fully aware of the pain that he was causing the couple in front of him.

Kate sat down hard, bits of the doctor's sentences running through her head, 'not all of the bruises are from tonight's attack', 'rape kit', 'recent bruising'...'rape'...

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_Bet you didn't see that coming, huh? It wasn't what I had planned originally, but it's what came out when I sat down to write. Please review and let me know what you think!_

PS: Still looking for a beta for this story!

**Sya**


	7. Hospital

Marissa insisted on getting checked out at the earliest possible moment, against all medical advisement. Kate had spent the night in her room, refusing to allow anyone other than medical staff in with the two of them, but there was no chance to talk, as Marissa fell asleep as soon as the police had her statement and Kate was back in her room.

"Ma'am, I need to speak with you about the arrangements for your sister, can we step outside?" inquired Marissa's doctor, leading Kate outside once more. Castle had gone home for the night when Kate had locked herself in her sister's room, but he arrived – with coffee – in time to see her step out to have another talk with the doctor.

"Due to the unusual bruising, we've had to open an investigation, and we can't allow Marissa to go home to her foster home." heard Castle as he got close to the two of them, handing Kate her coffee as he took his usual place behind him.

"She really wants to leave, doctor, she can't stand it here. Where is she going to go?" mumbled Kate, taking a sip of the coffee, which had been prepared just the way she liked it.

"As soon as I contacted the social workers and the police, I asked them to look around for a temporary home for her. Since she's 13 we can't release her on to her own reconnaissance, and they managed to find a home for her." answered the doctor, trying to figure out how best to explain the situation to the confused woman. "However, I did some research, and it's not in a good area of town. I'd hesitate to send any child there, much less one who has been attacked recently and is still healing both mentally and physically."

"So, what are our options here?" asked Castle when it became clear that Kate wasn't going to ask, she was struck dumb by the fact that the only place they could find to send her was in a bad part of the city.

"Well, if there is anyone in her life that is registered as a foster parent, they could take her in temporarily while she gets back on her feet." replied the doctor, leading the others to sit down in the chairs, he could tell it would be a long conversation.

"I tried once, but they don't let you foster as a single adult if you work..." said Kate, to no one in particular as she sat down in between the doctor and her partner. She heard Castle sigh, and knew he was going to say something stupid.

"I can take her in." he said calmly, one word at a time. She was right, he'd said something stupid.

"Castle? What are you thinking?" whispered Kate, hating that he'd gotten her hopes up for a brief moment.

"I'm serious, Beckett. I went through a phase where I really wanted to give back, and since writing isn't really considered 'working' for the government, they let me register so long as I agree to work from home if I ever had a foster child." He had reverted to using her last name since she'd used his. Her eyes found his, and she could see the sincerity in them, it was enough to cause tears to well up in her eyes at his gesture.

"I – I don't know what to say." she said gently. Breaking away from the eye contact, which had become uncomfortable, she downed the rest of her coffee, standing up in a hurry. "Let's go talk to Marissa, and see what she says."

"No." was the only answer that they got from Marissa. "No."

"What? Marissa, how can you say no?" begged Kate, grasping her sister's hand, pleading with her to agree to the arrangement.

"No, I can't go stay with Castle. I just can't." Marissa turned her head away, not wanting to see the pain she was causing her sister.

"Why not?" asked Kate, glancing towards Castle's face in the window, no doubt he could guess how well the conversation was going.

"I'm not ready, Kate. I don't know him, I barely know you! If this hadn't happened..." she let her voice trail off, knowing Kate could fill in the rest.

"But it did happen, Marissa. And if you don't go with Castle, the only other alternative is going to some home in a bad part of the city. If you go there, the doctor doesn't think you'll have a good chance at healing correctly." pleaded Kate, her voice almost whining for her sister to listen to the words she was saying.

"I want to talk to the doctor." replied Marissa, turning her head to show the finality of the conversation. It was an unnecessary gesture, because Kate had run off immediately at her command, to find the doctor.

"Explain my condition to me please." Marissa's voice took Kate by surprise. When she spoke to the doctor Marissa's voice was the opposite of what it usually was with her, it was curt and polite, with no emotion behind it. Her face was blank as well, and she hadn't moved since the doctor had entered the room, it was as though she was steeling herself for the news, trying to keep a poker face in place.

"You have an awful lot of bruising, a fractured wrist and a concussion. We'd like to keep you here for observation, just to make sure that everything is okay with you. You need bed rest for at least a week, and we need to put a sturdier cast on your wrist." answered her doctor, gesturing at the flimsy wrap that was currently bandaging her wrist. "You have all the stitches that you'll be needing, but you'll need to keep an eye on those cuts to make sure they don't become infected."

"And the rape kit?" inquired Marissa so quietly that it took the adults a few minutes to work out what she'd asked.

"It was negative. You had some bruising on your upper thighs which is what made us decide to do the kit, but there was no sign of sexual contact and you are clean of any diseases." he answered. Both of the adults could see the change in Marissa as he spoke, her body became less rigid, and her face relaxed, she looked like a normal girl again, albeit one who was beat up and in a hospital bed.

"Okay." When she spoke this time her voice was louder, she had more confidence. "I'll stay with Castle. But, Kate, there is something about me that you need to know first, and you're not going to like it." she warned as she saw Kate's face light up.

"I sincerely doubt that there's anything about you that I wouldn't like." replied Kate with a grin, pleased that Marissa was going to stay somewhere safe where she would be looked after properly. "But why don't you tell me."

A few hours later, Kate, Marissa and Castle were standing outside the run-down house that Marissa had been calling home for the past few months. She's refused to tell Kate the secret, saying that it was something that needed to be seen instead. So, Kate had spoken with the doctors, and gotten Castle to fill out all of the necessary paperwork so that he could check Marissa out of the hospital. The police had warned against her going back to the house, as the foster parents had been alerted that they were under investigation, but Marissa had insisted.

"Please don't be too angry with me, Kate." said Marissa as she pulled open the front door of the little home. "I'm home!"

"What the hell do you think you're doing back here? Huh? You got the police and them social workers coming down on us now all 'cause you got yourself beat up!" A burly man stepped out of the kitchen, greeting his foster daughter with harsh words. He shut his mouth as he saw Kate flash her badge, letting him know that she was the police, and he'd better behave himself. As Kate was standing behind Marissa, the younger girl couldn't see what she'd done, and assumed the man had simply not wanted to make more trouble in front of the adults that were flanking her back.

"I just came for my stuff." she countered, feeling braver than she ever had before in the house.

"Well, make sure you take _all _of it." he grumbled before heading back to finish his meal. Marissa led them through the hall to a small door next to the bathroom. Taking a deep breath, she pushed it open, rushing forward to pick up the baby that was lying in a crib that was pressed up against the wall. Turning with the child in her arms, Marissa addressed Kate and Castle, who were standing in the doorway where she'd left them.

"Guys, this is Johanna."

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_A/N: Cliffhanger! Let me know what you think, suggestions are always welcome. Let me know if you want to beta_

**Sya**


	8. Packing

"Johanna..." Breathed out Kate, not sure of what she was hearing.

"Johanna Beckett." answered Marissa, holding the child's body flush against hers.

"She's not another sister, is she?" asked Rick. "Or, half-sister I mean?" He corrected, looking down at the small brunette child before him. She couldn't have been older than 10 months old, and she was giggling in Marissa's arms.

"No, not another sister." sighed Marissa, she didn't think that she'd have to spell it out to them. She'd been counting on the child's presence, and name to explain it all. "My daughter."

"But, you're 13!" exclaimed the oldest Beckett.

"I know..." replied Marissa dejectedly. She had thought that after everything, Kate would have been able to accept the baby.

"Why didn't you tell me?" inquired her sister, stepping closer to get a better look at the child. Marissa took a deep breath, and reached out her arms, handing her child over to her aunt.

"Because I was worried you'd act like this. But I couldn't bring her over to Castle's house without telling you." was the answer. Now it made sense to the adults, of why Marissa had been so reluctant to stay with him, and why she had been so scared to enter the house.

"It's just a lot to take in.." Kate let her voice trail off as she saw Johanna smile at her. She smiled back, letting the small child take one of her fingers in her hand. "How did you know –?"

"To name her Johanna? It's why I went searching to my parents. When I found out I was going to have her... I wanted to do something to show my parents that I wasn't mad, so I asked what my mom's name was so I could name my girl after her." Watching the interaction between her sister and her daughter, Marissa let a smile appear on her face, the first one since she'd been attacked. It didn't go unnoticed by Rick, though Kate was distracted by the baby. He could tell how important it was for Marissa to have a family at that moment.

"Why don't we get your stuff together? Kate will keep an eye on Johanna while we work. We're going to have to dismantle that crib though, I don't have my daughter's old one anymore." A different set of brown eyes than he was used to were staring at him, Marissa's. She was looking at him with an expression that can only be described as admiration.

"You still want me to stay with you? Even with Johanna?" She inquired, holding herself as rigidly as she had in the hospital, waiting for the worst.

"Yes, of course I do. You _both_ need a safe home, and I can give you that." he answered, staring into her eyes without looking away so that she knew he was serious.

"Thank you." Those simple words broke both his and Kate's hearts. There was a pain in the younger girl's voice, one that hinted at past hurts and disappointments, but also a joy at being wanted.

"She's adorable." stated Kate, saying the first thing she'd said since taking Johanna. Marissa looked at the pair of them, happy that Kate was able to accept the child, even if maybe she didn't approve.

"Alright, Marissa, let's get to work." said Rick, stepping into the teen's room. He could tell that she didn't have a lot of things to pack, most of it seemed to belong to Johanna. It took less than two hours to get everything packed up, and take apart the crib. While the two of them were working, Kate was sitting in a chair, rocking Johanna back and forth, she couldn't take her eyes of the child. When she began to cry, Kate threw her over her shoulder, patting her back lightly. A thought occurred to her.

"Marissa?" she asked gently.

"Yeah, Kate?" answered her younger sister, her head in the closet.

"Who took care of Johanna last night? And while you go to school?" inquired Kate, moving the baby in question down to her lap.

"I did." the voice came from the doorway. The three occupants of the room turned to look for the voice's owner. They found an older woman standing there, about the same age as the man they saw earlier. She had the same hard expression on her face, it was obvious that she blames Marissa, Kate and Rick for the investigation that was occurring into their family.

"Oh." answered Kate, unsure of what to say.

"You leaving her here?" said the woman gruffly, ignoring Kate and looking only at Marissa.

"No, she's coming with me." Marissa looked at the woman incredulously. "Of course she's coming with me." The woman turned and walked away with out another word. Not long after that they were done packing up and ready to leave the house for good. Kate took the car seat out to the car, getting Johanna buckled in while Rick went to get the last bag and load it into the car. When he went back into the house for the last bag, he saw Marissa cornered in the hall by the man of the house. He ran right in, pulling the man away from her.

"She's been through more than enough in the past few weeks, you better back off, man." he said as he pulled the guy away. Marissa looked as though she was about to cry, and took her escape, running out to meet Kate by the car.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" asked Kate when she saw her sister's face.

"He's just mad about the investigation, they're going to lose their status as foster parents now." she answered, curling into the back seat next to her daughter. Kate sighed, fighting the urge to go back in the house and yell at her terrible foster parent. Presently, Rick walked out of the run-down building, rubbing his hand.

"What did you do?" she reached forward, taking his bruised hand in hers.

"I punched him. He had her cornered in the hall and he was yelling at her." he answered curtly, before walking around to the other side of the car and getting in. Turning in the seat, he shot a smile back at Marissa and Johanna. "All taken care of, we're good to go."

Kate got in, driving them away from the house forever, glancing in the rear view mirror every few minutes to keep an eye on the young girls in the back of her cruiser. She drove straight to the loft, and she stood outside of the building with Rick, admiring the look of awe on her sister's face when she saw where she'd be staying temporarily.

"You live here?" she gasped out, glancing back at the writer. She didn't know much about him, just that he worked with her sister, and was very important to her.

"Yeah, and for now, so do you." he answered, leading the way past the doorman and up the elevator. Kate had once more taken control of Johanna, giving Marissa the opportunity to take in her new home. Alexis was home, and since Rick had called her earlier to explain the situation, she'd been cleaning the place to prepare it for their new guest.

"Hi, I'm Alexis." she said as the awe-struck teen walked in. "You must be Marissa."

"Yeah, hi." said the younger girl shyly. "You live here? This place is huge."

"Hey, Alexis, this is Johanna, Marissa's daughter." Kate introduced the child that was snuggled in her arms. Alexis, to her credit, didn't show any surprise on her face, she just walked over to greet the small child.

"Why don't you go help Marissa get unpacked in the guest room? The doorman is bringing up her stuff." asked Rick once all the introductions had finished. The two teens agreed, each taking hold of a bag from Eduardo, the doorman, when he arrived before disappearing into the upstairs. That left Kate and Rick alone with Johanna in the living room.

"They'll be good for each other." said Rick, misreading the concern on Kate's face.

"No, it's not that. It's her." she responded, gesturing at the baby that was crawling around on the floor in front of the couch. "She's so young, Rick. And she has a baby. That's why she wanted to get out of the hospital right away, she didn't want to leave Johanna with those horrible people.

"Kate, Kate." replied Rick, reaching over to brush the tears from her cheeks. "Marissa needs people to be strong for her right now. We need to catch the people who did this to her, the guy who beat her up last night, the foster parents who beat her, and the guy who gave her Johanna."

"The guy who gave her Johanna?" Kate never took her eyes off the small child in front of her.

"I doubt that it was a kid her age, I bet it was some man in her life taking advantage of her. You told me how she was acting when she asked the doctor about the rape kit." The memories hit her, and Kate understood just how her sister came about having a daughter at 13.

* * *

_Please review and let me know what you think! Reviews make me a happy bunny._

**Sya**


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